Chapter 2: Their first date
Liam un-clipped his seat belt and grabbed his bag, he opened his door and got out, leaving the door open for Delia - who undid her seat belt and got her bag, she joined Liam's side and closed the door behind her, allowing Sally to lock the car. Delia couldn't wait to introduce her new boyfriend to her family. Sally was already at the front door, ready to let the couple inside. Liam noticed a flower garden growing on each side of the path leading to the door, he smiled and guessed that Sally and Delia could have planted them, he pictured Delia as the type who loves gardening.
Sally unlocked the front door and opened it to let her daughter and Liam in first. Liam whistled as he walked inside Delia's house with her close by his side, the couple held hands as Liam looked around at the furniture, carpet and other decorations. Sally closed the door behind them and locked it and caught up with Delia and Liam, while making her way to the kitchen to prepare dinner for that night. "You really have a nice home, Delia," he commented, as he glanced around at the ornaments and posters that were here and there.
"Thank you, though you haven't seen the rest of my house yet…" Delia told him.
"I thought there would be more to your house, Delia. I'm looking forward to see the rest of it," Liam slipped his hands into his pockets as he walked with her. "Where are we going now?" he questioned curiously as he followed Delia.
"I'm going to introduce you to my father," Delia announced. "I just have to find him first." 'Hm, I imagine he would be in the backyard training with my youngest brother' she thought to herself as she took Liam to the sliding door which connected to the backyard.
Liam gulped and hoped that Delia didn't notice him doing just that. He pictured Delia's father as a muscular looking guy with a mustache with a fiery temper to match. He shuddered at the thought of being introduced to him. "Um, what is your father like? Does he bite?" he asked – a little afraid of his imagination.
Delia giggled. "Dad doesn't bite, he's a lovely person, however, if you get on his wrong side he then does bite! You'll like him – I'm sure of it!" she exclaimed happily. "He is usually training with my youngest brother to prepare him for his journey to become a Pokémon Master, my brother wants to learn as much as he can before he can go on, Sam has been also helping out with that" she gushed as she stopped at the sliding door which led to the backyard.
Delia opened the door and stepped outside with Liam following close behind her. She was greeted by a black dog like Pokémon which growled at Liam on entry and barked playfully at Delia, Liam knelt down to allow the small Pokémon to sniff his hand. "I see you guys have a Poochyena. I hear they are from the Hoenn Region and aren't normally found around Kanto" Liam said, smiling as the small Pokémon allowed him to pat it.
"Yes, Samuel got him for us. He knows Professor Birch who lives there" Delia informed him, watching Liam standing up. Poochyena let out a soft growl, and jumped up playfully at Delia, who knelt down and patted it. "Poochyena and I are close. We got him as a pup, his name is Lexi – named after my great grandfather" she added. "Lexi is a strong Pokémon, even though you may not realize it we have been doing a lot of training with him recently, I guess in terms of the Pokémon League, he'd be strong enough to defeat two of the members of the Elite Four. We chose not to evolve him, as he does not wish to" she explained to Liam.
"He'd defeat my Pokémon easily then," Liam laughed nervously, referring to when Delia mentioned that Lexi was strong enough to defeat two of the Elite Four. Delia smiled and picked up Lexi, who happily licked her face several times, making her giggle in response. She then put him down and looked at Liam.
"Hm…" Liam started to say as he placed his index finger under his chin and looked at Delia "I noticed with Lexi earlier he growled at me then let me pat him afterwards, is that normal?" Liam asked, looking at Lexi who was sitting down near Delia. Delia turned her attention to Liam.
"Yes, sometimes Lexi is like that. Sam said it was possibly because Lexi doesn't like the person straight away. If Lexi lets you pat him then he wants to get to know you. He did that with my best friends – you know, Caroline and Norman" Delia told him.
"Is it okay if I let one of my Pokemon out? Actually it's the only one I have on me at the moment, as I left the others at home" Liam asked, hoping to introduce Lexi to his Pokemon.
"Mhm, sure, go ahead! I'd love to see what you have. I don't have any at the moment – though I am still planning to get an Eevee. I love them, they are so cute. I love Mr. Mimes too" Delia answered, giving him approval to let his Pokemon out.
"Come on out, Flame!" Liam tossed the Pokéball into the air, it burst open and out came a white light, revealing a small black dragon like Pokémon with a flame on its tail. "Char! Char-man-der, Char," the black Pokémon cried out as it neatly landed on its feet.
"Ooh, so cute, a Charmander, but wait, how did you get a shiny one? I heard they are rare to get," Delia asked, curiously.
"I had a little bit of help from people I know," Liam informed her. He didn't want to tell her about being a part of Team Rocket, and knowing the leader Giovani, not he. He actually stole Flame from a young boy who just got him from a trade. He knew if Delia knew that she'd leave him. He didn't want that to happen yet as their relationship just started.
Charmander ran up to Delia, crying its name out. Delia knelt down to pat it. "You are unique, Flame. I've never seen a shiny Charmander up until now, what other Pokémon do you have, Liam?" Delia asked, standing up once more. Liam recalled Flame to its Pokéball, and placed it in his pocket.
"I have a fair few," Liam replied, that part was true, yet again he had stolen several Pokémon from people. "I'll show you sometime if you like," he added. "Sure, I'd love to see all of your Pokémon," Delia smiled then overheard her father's voice as they continued walking further into the backyard which was large.
"Machop, use Karate Chop!" an older male's voice was heard commanding their Pokémon. Delia nodded to Liam, informing him that the voice belonged to her father, she walked further into the backyard with Liam and smiled finding that her youngest brother was training his first Pokémon.
"Pidgey, dodge that and use Peck," a younger boy's voice countered with the Pokémon. As they neared the voices, Liam noticed a taller man with black hair and blue eyes. The man was wearing a pair of: navy blue jeans, a grey collared shirt which had a chest pocket, brown shoes and a watch. The younger boy had black hair and blue eyes, he was adorned in a pair of black jeans which were torn at the knees, a white shirt and a pair of sneakers.
"Dad? I'm sorry to interrupt you and Jason, however, I want to introduce you both to my new boyfriend, Liam. Liam this is my father Robert, and my youngest brother, Jason," Delia introduced the three to one another. "Dad, Jason, this is my new boyfriend, Liam," Delia added.
Robert turned his attention to his Machop. "Machop, you can take a short break," he then turned his attention to Liam and put his hand out to shake his. Machop appeared to sigh in relief and sat down near Robert. "Nice to meet you, my name's Robert and as Delia said I'm her father. I've been helping my son, Jason learn how to battle with Pokémon before he can start his journey in two years. Anyway, what about you? What are your interests and do you work?" Robert asked, keen to get to know Liam. He liked the look of the boy but he wanted to see if he could earn his trust.
"Hello, sir, and um, Jason, was it?." Liam replied, starting to feel a bit nervous. He gulped and tried finding words to answer Robert's question. "My interests, sir? Pokémon of course, and your lovely daughter, Delia." Liam started to say and paused for a moment. 'Was that the right thing to say?' he found himself thinking. "I work, but I can't tell you what I do – it's top secret, sir" Liam finished, folding his arms.
Delia looked at Robert and back to Liam each time they spoke, she noticed her brother hadn't had the chance to talk to Liam and had left to sit with Pidgey. Jason was shy at first but enjoyed talking to people once he got to know them.
"Do you work part time?" Robert asked, folding his arms for a moment to get comfortable. He had previously asked Augustine Sycamore this question and was impressed by his employment and personality. Augustine was working in a Pokémon Center.
"I work part time – sir. Why do you ask?" Liam questioned, rubbing the back of his head nervously. He didn't want to feel forced to tell Robert that he worked for Team Rocket.
Delia listened to her father talking and wondered why Liam wasn't going to tell them where he worked. 'Maybe he feels embarrassed to what he does for work? Perhaps he works at a PokéMart and feels that's a low-end job?' Delia thought looking a bit concerned. 'But, saying that, Caroline works at one and she loves it.'
"Do you have any more questions to ask, sir? Like, how many times I need to breath a day?" Liam asked rudely – frowning at Robert. Delia gasped and covered her mouth, after hearing Liam asking that.
"LIAM!" She hissed at him.
Lucky for Delia, Robert simply laughed. "All I want you to do is have fun with Delia, and look after her while you are both on your date. I just wanted to know a bit more about you before I let you go with Delia," he told Liam.
Liam felt his phone vibrate, wanting to answer it, he decided against it as he was concerned about Robert taking it from him. He just felt really uncomfortable and scared of Delia's father. In attempt of shaking his fear from him, he chose to explain a bit more about himself to see if things will be easier for him with Robert.
"I'll tell you a bit about myself; I'm a transfer student from the Orange Islands, and am currently staying at the motel in Pallet Town." Liam announced. "I broke up with my ex-girlfriend before I came here so that's about several months back and never kept in contact with her." Liam continued to say, the part of him staying at the motel was a lie – as there were no motels in Pallet Town. He did however, break up with his ex-girlfriend and he did come from the Orange Islands. "
One of my dreams is to become a…." Liam paused for a moment trying to remember what his goal in life was job wise – though he really loved his current position. "never mind, that's not important I forgot what my life goal was jobwise. Anyway – continuing on sir, if you approve of myself and Delia, I promise to love and take good care of her, and of course, spoil her. She deserves it" he added, he could feel sweat coming from his forehead with the lies he had come up with just to impress Robert.
Robert looked at Liam and wondered if that part about his ex-girlfriend was true. He didn't believe him for a second about the motel part. "To be honest, I don't know what to think about you at the moment, Liam. I don't trust you, however, Delia seems to and I'm not sure why. Maybe you can earn my trust by proving that you do love my Delia. However, part of me doesn't want to let you take her out on a date, but seeing that Delia adores you, I'll allow it for this once, and we'll see how things go from there," Robert told him.
While the two men were talking, Delia listened to them, she was disappointed that her father didn't trust him, however, she wanted to prove her father wrong about Liam. "Delia, can I talk to you, alone?!" Robert half whispered to her. Liam overheard him and went inside, to see if Sally required help in the kitchen. Jason decided to sit down on the ground near the glass door while all this was happening – Pidgey followed him. Machop stayed by Robert's side.
"All this love stuff makes me sick, Pidgey, remind me not to fall in love when I'm older!" Jason muttered to the bird type Pokémon who sat upon his shoulders. Pidgey cooed to him and rubbed it's head on the boy's cheek.
"Dee. I don't trust him… there's something about him that makes me feel uncomfortable, I don't want you to be with him after this date," Robert complained to Delia, after Liam had left.
"But dad," Delia whined "I love him. He makes me so happy and isn't happiness the best thing? If you love someone and they make you happy, I should be allowed to date him, right? I'm almost 18, and you treat me like I'm a child" she added in the same tone of whiny voice.
Robert folded his arms and frowned. "Honey, I know but…. There's something I just don't like about Liam," he told her. "Daddy, why don't you give me a chance with Liam? Maybe a couple dates then you can decide from there whether you approve or not? You approved of Augustine because you both had a lot of things in common, and you mentioned if Sam was my age you would've approved of us, as you know my crush on him," Delia whispered the part about Sam in whisper. "and yes, I still have a crush on him," she added.
"Gus looked after you, Honey, and he proved to me that he could do it. On the first meeting, he and I had we got on very well and he had a good vibe. Liam feels like he could be trouble. Sadly, Sam is too old for you, Dee. Even though I love seeing you two happily together as friends. Back on topic, Liam is bad… I'll give him a chance though, but if he ditches you and leaves you, I'll shake him until he turns blue!" Robert told Delia, as he looked around to see what Jason was doing, He had almost forgotten his own son was with him the entire time. Jason had been sitting on the ground nearby, patting his Pidgey and talking to it. Machop was still sitting near Robert.
Delia smiled and hugged Robert. "Thank you, Dad! I'll ensure that things will work out well for us…" Delia turned around and went to find Liam. 'I hope,' she thought with a concerned face expression.
"Alright, Jay, let's get back to training," Robert announced to his son, who appeared to be bored waiting for Robert to finish talking to Delia. Jay was Jason's nickname. Jason got up and smiled happily. "Yes! Finally!" he exclaimed, jumping up and down from excitement, causing Robert to laugh in result, Pidgey fluttered its wings and flew up into the air. Machop got up and joined Robert's side.
Delia made her way to the kitchen – to tell her mother the news about Robert giving Liam a chance and was surprised to see that Liam was not there, however, her mother was. "Huh? I thought Liam was going to be here," she said aloud taking another quick look around to see if he was hiding, however, he was not.
Sally turned her attention to Delia and sighed. "He went outside just a while ago, Dear. I'm not sure what to think of the boy – he offered me help which I'm grateful against, however, he was on his mobile the entire time he spoke to me. You know touching the screen whatever people do on it. If you can snap him out of the habit, he'd make a nice husband in the future. He tells me he plans to take you out on a romantic date and hopes to marry you sometime in the future," Sally told her. Like Delia, Sally wasn't interested in mobile phones, she had no idea how to use one.
"I'm not too concerned with his phone habit. I love his personality and he is cute," Delia commented, smiling. "I'll go and find him, I'm sure my father would like to talk to him once more before we go out," she added and skipped off to find Liam.
Sally resumed to her cooking and sighed, she shook her head and looked sadly after her daughter had left. 'Oh Dee, you've grown up so much. I hope Liam and you work out well. If not there are always other guys out there for you. Liam doesn't seem to be the right one though, something in my gut tells me he's bad news,' she thought. 'I may ask Sam about Liam to see what he thinks of him, after all, Liam is his student too, and Delia happens to be one of Sam's favourites,' Sally continued making the meal as she thought about Delia's future.
Delia searched outside of her house for Liam however, he was not there, so she walked back into the backyard and found him talking to Robert once more and overheard what they were talking about. She noticed that Jason and his Pidgey had left the scene, she figured her brother got bored and decided to go to do something else in the meantime while he waited for his father to help him with training.
"I approve of your relationship with Delia, just make her happy and I'm happy. You have probably heard of Augustine Sycamore, he and Delia were close. They were almost inseparable. I'd love to see you two like that, it's just a pity he had to move" Robert announced with a smile. "Now I've got to go and find that son of mine again so we can finish our training, feel free to make yourself at home," he added – noticing that Jason was not in the backyard this time.
Jason had left to watch the beginning of the Pokémon League in his room after getting bored of hearing Robert and Liam talking to one another. He loved watching battles on TV.
Liam smiled. "Thank you, sir. I'll take good care of Delia, I promise!" he smiled, giving Robert thumbs up. Delia joined Liam's side once more after seeing that he had just finished talking to Robert. She slipped her arm through Liam's. "Isn't he perfect, Dad?" she exclaimed, looking at Robert then back to Liam.
Robert laughed at Delia's statement. "I'll see after a few months, Honey. Liam has to prove himself to me that he's 'perfect' for you." He used his fingers for quotation marks when he mentioned the word perfect. Liam felt his phone vibrate, an anxious look appeared on his face as he slipped his hand in his pocket, Delia let go of Liam and hugged Robert.
"Dad, I'm sure he'd easily do that," Delia announced. "Right, Li? Huh?" Delia noticed that Liam had taken his phone out and had an anxious face expression after reading what was on the screen.
Liam bit his bottom lip, which caused Delia and Robert to both glanced at one another in response. Liam read the message on his phone which appeared to be long:
'Liam, after your date tonight, I want you to come to the Head Quarters at once, Giovanni wants to meet you and discuss important details with you. Please ensure the date does not discoverer you work for us- Marlie Q'
Marlie Q was his team mate from Team Rocket and close companion – the two had been able to reach top ranks together and enjoy stealing Pokémon and going on dangerous missions to impress Giovanni.
After reading Marlie's message, Liam received another one:
'Hey Liam, I'm excited for our date tonight, where are we going? What time are you meeting me? Love you xox – Madison'
Madison is his 'ex' girlfriend – the very same Madison in Delia's class. He had been dating Madison over 2 years and the two decided to plan a fake breakup to see how things worked out. He wanted to spend time with Delia during the fake break up with Madison. Though sometimes Liam and Madison would go on dates.
"Everything okay, Liam?" Delia asked, concerned with her boyfriend's face expression. Liam turned his attention to Delia and gave her a smile and nodded – he replied to Marlie's message first, saying:
'Alright, will see you soon, Marlie. I should be available to be there around 9-10.- Liam'
'Uh, Madison, might be late, I have work – and um might be around between 7-9PM, will text you back when I get the right time for you, love you to baby girl xox – Liam' he lied in that text message, as Liam was not going to work.
With a sigh of relief after sending those messages, Liam slipped his phone in his pocket and beamed.
"I'm going to go get ready for our date, Liam, I can't go wearing what I am wearing now!" Delia announced jumping around excitedly. Liam chuckled. He noticed that Robert had just left to find Jason and was relieved of that. Poochyena was nearby eating Pokémon food. He turned to talk to Delia and found that she was no longer there.
Liam shrugged and walked inside the house, to talk to Sally. He wanted to know her more and decided to check for the final time if she wanted any help. "Mrs Ketchum, are you sure you don't want any help?" he asked once more, with a smile. Sally turned around and smiled back to Liam, "no thank you dear, but thank you for offering. You should make yourself feel at home, Delia shouldn't be too long. She's having a shower then she'll be changing into her new outfit." Sally told him as she cut up some vegetables and put them into a pot.
Liam looked at the meal that she was making. "You must cook for everyday of the week," he commented while still smiling. Sally giggled, "sometimes it feels that way, Liam. The truth is that Samuel is coming over for dinner tonight, he has been my husband's friend since they were kids, Samuel is a great man," Sally gushed, smiling as she thought of the professor.
"Samuel?" Liam asked wondering who he was. Sally giggled again seeing that she confused Liam. "I forgot to mention that Samuel is Professor Oak, he's got a close relationship with my entire family, he lost his wife to a terrible illness several years ago, Rose was a lovely lady," Sally looked to the ground sadly. If it wasn't onions that made her cry – it was missing her best friend.
"She was my best friend, I've often tried to hook Samuel up with another woman but each time he seemed to reject the offer and said that Rose wouldn't like him being with someone else. Sam also mentioned he liked someone else but wasn't ready to tell his new crush yet" she added. Liam stared at Sally in surprise and shock.
"I'm sorry about Rose. I never knew Professor Oak had a wife. I'm surprised he hasn't moved on, since he seems popular at the university," Liam said, slipping his hands in his pockets to feel comfortable. "I wonder why he's not ready to tell his crush yet?"
"Samuel is a very popular man, everyone loves him. I guess Sam isn't ready to tell her and he wants to ensure the timing is right? Or that he's worried about his crush's reply? I don't blame. I love Samuel as a friend, that's about all, I'm a happily married woman, though almost happy," Sally started to say, as she began to look sad. "Almost happy?" Liam asked, wondering what on Arcus she meant by that. Sally bit her bottom lip and looked at Liam.
"I'm dying. And I'm planning to tell this to my family tonight. Doctors say I have a year to live though that was nine months ago and I want to see my baby girl get married. I've been feeling quiet ill lately, I may not look it physically but it's true – I now have three months – I may be lucky enough to see Delia's 18th birthday..." Sally told him, as she tried fighting back tears. Liam believed her and didn't know what to say, "I'm sorry, Sally. I wish we can find a cure to your illness," Liam quietly told her, hoping that nobody was around to hear him say that. "Wait, when is Delia's 18th?"
"Ask Delia, she's your girlfriend after all!" Sally smiled weakly to him.
"Thank you, sweetheart, I wish that too," Sally dried her eyes, referring to when Liam wished he could find a cure to her illness. She washed her hands in the kitchen sink and then continued on with the meal. "Please, don't tell Delia that while you are on your date with her. Delia and I are very close," she added. "It will be hard on her if you tell her. I will tell her when I am ready."
"I won't, I promise, Mrs. Ketchum." Liam assured her, wishing that there was something he could do to make the situation better. Awkward silence filled the air as Sally continued preparing dinner for that night, she hummed a tune to herself.
"I'm back," Delia announced as she walked into the kitchen. She was wearing a yellow summer dress with matching high heels, her hair was down and wore a shoulder bag. Liam whistled at Delia, "I like what I see, no wait. I love what I see, you look really bright and lovely tonight, Delia," Liam commented, with a smile. "Thank you, Liam. Should we get going now?" Delia asked with a smile.
Remembering that his backpack was with him the entire time, Liam decided it was best for him to leave it on him – after all his work uniform was in it and things that he needed for university.
"If you two are going now, I hope you both have fun and a great night, and Delia, don't forget that your curfew is at nine, and no later!" Sally smiled to the young couple. Liam put his arm around Delia's waist, and she put hers around his. "Yes Mum, I won't forget, I love you, Mum." Delia smiled to Sally. "I love you too, sweetie," Sally said.
Delia led Liam out of her house and put her hand out to him, Liam put his hand in hers. "Shall we walk to the cinemas?" Delia asked. "It's about twenty minutes from where I live, and it's a lovely afternoon" she added, looking at the clear blue sky. Several Pidgies flew past as she mentioned that.
"Mhm, sounds good to me, Delia" Liam answered, and felt his phone vibrate. Deciding to ignore it for now, he began talking to Delia nicely as they walked past several couples on the way to the cinemas.
"So your mum mentioned that your 18th was coming up – when is it?" Liam asked curiously. Delia beamed. "I'll let you guess – it's between May and August" she wanted the conversation to be fun and playful.
"You know, I'm not a mind reader…" Liam laughed nervously. 'That's when Madison and I stop our fake break up' he thought. Delia giggled at his response. "When is yours?" she asked.
"Since we're playing this game, mine's between January and April" Liam lied. He wasn't planning to tell her when his birthday was. His actual birthday was the 18th of September. Delia's is the 15th of May.
Delia and Liam made their way to the cinemas. Noticing that his bag was still on his back, Delia turned her attention to Liam. "Isn't that heavy for you to carry around? I left mine in my room" she asked, referring to the bag.
"No, mine has important stuff in it so I can't put it down" Liam replied – he counted his work clothes and laptop important.
Liam let go of Delia's hand and felt around in his pockets and gasped. "Oh no" he exclaimed in horror.
"What?!" Delia wondered, feeling somewhat concerned about him.
"I left my wallet at home – looks like we might not be able to go to the movies after all and pay for the restaurant," Liam announced looking concerned. That was a lie. He put his wallet in his backpack and hid it in his uniform - he did that while he was at the university and talking to Madison. He didn't really want to pay for the movies and restaurant. Delia thought he was being honest and smiled to him.
"Don't worry, Li. I'll pay for them this time," Delia offered. Liam turned away from her and smirked – hoping she didn't see that. "Please don't call me Li, I hate that name," he told her in a angry voice. "Call me that again and I'll shove you!" he threatened her.
Delia bit her bottom lip. 'Perhaps he's just joking around with me?' she thought. Deciding to lighten things up she changed the topic and tried her best not to sound nervous. She smiled seeing a couple walking ahead of her, a man around the same age as Professor Oak and a woman about her age holding hands and kissing now and then. 'They make me miss Sam...' she thought - almost wishing that the Professor was with her.
"O-okay... So um... what er... movies do you like?" Delia asked, feeling awkward around Liam after he had threatened her. She held her hand out to him, however, he slapped it hard away, causing her to gasp in pain. Augustine was never like this to her. She wondered if Liam was playing around with her and testing her.
"I don't want to hold your hand! Why would I do that? Your not a baby - though you are pathetic if you want my hand," Liam snapped at her. He pushed her aside and started walking ahead of her. "You're pathetic," he added. "Also my favourte kind of movies are action and horror... What about yours?"
Delia stopped walking at that statement. She wanted to go home, however, Liam turned around for a moment to notice she wasn't close behind him behind him. "Quit acting like a Slowpoke, we'll miss out no the movies at this rate," Liam demanded, marching angrily up to her and grabbing her wrist tightly. Delia bit her bottom lip, trying to ignore the firm and tight grip. To her it felt like her wrist was going to break off any moment. "C-can you let go? I'm not a Slowpoke - that's a Pokemon!" She tried freeing her hand from his grip, however, he wouldn't let go. ;Delia tried to think of a way to get out of his grip and lighten up the moment. "My favourite movies: are romance and action" she told him. "Pathetic," Liam responded to the movie genre selection that she likes.
Delia noticed a couple walking past and smiled to them, Liam quickly let go of her wrist and held her hand - tight. Confused, Delia looked at him and when the couple closer of sight, he grabbed her wrist tighter then usual. "Why did you do that?" Delia asked.
Liam ignored her and looked up ahead of him, noticing that the cinemas building was coming into sight. "We're almost there. You'd better have the right amount of money to pay for the both of us!" He hissed at her ignoring her question. Delia meekly nodded then smiled to him. 'I wonder how everyone's doing?' she thought. When she said everyone; she meant her family. 'I wonder if Sam would be there now' after that thought she half wished she was with them just to see the professor.
In the meantime at the Ketchum Family's house hold Professor Oak had just arrived and sat down at the kitchen table with Robert. The table had a white cloth with a blue vase sitting in the middle of it with tulips sitting happily in the vase. Sally just joined them after putting the night's meal on. She looked sadly at Robert and Professor Oak. "I wish we can always stay together - like this" she started to say as tears began filling her eyes. Sally did her best to blink them away - hoping that Robert or Sam didn't notice them - they hadn't.
"What do you mean by that, Sally? I'll always be here for you, Robert, Delia and the boys." Professor Oak asked, sounding somewhat confused when she said that. He figured she might be going away on a holiday of some kind without letting Robert and him know.
"Yeah, Sal. Why do you say that?" Robert looked at his wife in confusion and placed his hand on her shoulder.
Sally looked at Robert and rest her hand on his, then looked at Sam and back to Robert. "I never told you this as I've been worried about your reactions. I have been feeling unwell for over a year now and went to the doctors about it. I have a incurable disease and my doctor said I only have three months to live. I'd be lucky if I make it to Delia's 18th birthday... I won't ever get the chance to see my children have Grandchildren. I'm sorry I didn't tell you guys, I wanted to keep it secret but I could no longer do that, especially because I'm getting worse" Sally announced.
"Oh Sal" Robert hugged his wife and kissed her forehead. "You don't have to keep it secret from us. We're always here for you, Sam and I. I can imagine how hard this is for you, as it will be hard for us too, especially telling our children" he finished.
Professor Oak looked at her sadly. He had been friends with her as long as he had been with Robert. "Sal. I'm sorry to hear this, if I could I'd help find a cure. How did you manage to cope this long without telling anyone?" he asked, knowing what she went through. 'This is what Rose had gone through, before she died in a car-crash - she was avoiding a wild Rapidash on her way to work' he thought as a single tear rolled down his face. He wiped it away hoping that Robert or Sally didn't notice, it was rare seeing the professor cry. 'Delia won't take this news well. She and Sally are really close.'
"I just didn't feel comfortable telling you guys, Robbie. I'll tell our children when the time is right. You don't need to worry about my will or funeral - I have already organized them. Delia will be getting the cafe that I have running..." Sally informed them. "Robbie, you will be getting this house. I'm fine if you sell it to go on a journey, and Robbie. I want you to find a new girlfriend after I'm gone, I don't want you to be alone!" she added.
Awkward silence filled the room. Professor Oak and Robert looked at one another and back to Sally.
Robert kissed his wife's forehead "You are the one that holds us together, Sal. Both you and the kids are. Let's change topic and try to be happy with the time we have left for you," he gave her a weak smile and sat down in his seat once more. Professor Oak returned to his seat, and remained quiet, remembering when he was told the grim news about his wife's illness. "Rose..." he whispered his name softly, Sally heard him mention her name. "I'm surprised you haven't moved on yet, Sam or even told your crush" Sally said.
"I doubt I will, Sal. Just like you and Robert, Rose and I were very close. She meant the world to me. Our son is grown up and married, he and his wife are thinking of having children. I am not sure what Rose would want me to do. I'm not sure if she'd want me to move on and find a new girl or if she'd want me to stay widowed, besides I'm probably too old to find love now." Professor Oak told her with a slight chuckle. "I'm tempted to tell my crush, but she's most likely just a crush and nothing more would come out of that! I'm happy the way things are at the moment" he added.
"You are never too old to fall in love, I would want Robert to move on when I pass away, I'm sure he'd want the same thing to me, I don't want him to be lonely for the rest of his life. Sam – whatever path you choose with your crush, I'll fully support you all the way" Sally informed him. 'So much for changing topic,' Robert thought as the topic seemed to stay on the grim news.
"So, what is this lucky girl's name and how old is she?" Robert asked, hoping that his best friend would at least tell him while on the subject. "and do we know her?"
"Oh, you know her very well..." Professor Oak hinted, smiling at that. "I'll let you know the rest when the time is right," he added. 'Speaking of her, I wonder how she's going on her date...' his thoughts went to Delia of course.
"Finally!" Delia smiled after walking inside the cinemas with Liam. Liam let go of her. "Go choose a movie, and make sure I'll enjoy it too!" He demanded with a hint of frustration. "Get some popcorn and drinks too, I'm going to the bathroom" he ordered her. He then left before she could say anymore.
Delia nodded and looked around noticing the posters on the wall nearby, advertising movies that were currently showing. She hoped one of them would impress Liam. 'Why is he acting this way?' she thought anxiously as she glanced at the posters. She smiled after seeing a few that caught her eye, hoping that they would interest Liam.
"The mystery of Haunter," Delia read the title, and raised an eye brow. "In this movie, a young trainer by the name of Josh had lost his Haunter who had vanished without a trace, join Josh on his search to find his beloved Pokémon and maybe even romance on the way," she read the summary of the movie. "That sounds kind of boring," she frowned and looked at another poster.
"You're telling me, the title is off putting too, check out this one then Delia, I think you might like it: Prince Roy and Princess Rose: Roselia is missing, and her boyfriend, Roilu is anxious to find her, will Roilu be able to find his beloved Roselia safely or will he have challenges on the way? I hope there's horror in that one too," Liam commented as he looked at the second movie poster. There were four more to choose from. He had just returned from the bathroom. He mainly went there to answer his text messages.
"That does have a better summary, let's go with that one then. The other four sound kind of boring," Delia commented with an awkward smile. "You're telling me, okay let's go to the ticket box,". Liam's phone buzzed, he made a mental note to check the messages a bit later on, he knew who they were from.
There weren't many people lining up to see Prince Roy and Princess Rose, which was a relief to Delia. "Hello, and welcome to the cinemas what would you like to see?" A woman with brown hair and grey eyes asked. She was wearing a: Navy blue dress with her hair tied up, Liam assumed she was wearing a matching pair of high heals, though he couldn't see behind the counter, she was rather attractive, so he thought anyway, He noticed her name tag said "Jasmine" which must be her name. "Hi Jasmine, I'd like two tickets to see Prince Roy and Princess Rose, please," Delia answered, Jasmine nodded and printed out the tickets, "That would be twenty dollars, thank you," Jasmine smiled, indicating that the tickets were ten dollars each. Delia gave her the money and Jasmine gave him the tickets in return. "Enjoy the movie," Jasmine said, Delia thanked her then left with Liam, holding the tickets in his left hand.
"She seemed...nice." Delia said, as she put her hand in Liam's free hand - he slapped her hand away. "Yeah, she did, get some popcorn and a drink. I need to go for a bathroom break," Liam told her, though he didn't really need to have a bathroom break, he just wanted to check on the messages he had on his phone. Delia looked at him and smiled. "Okay, where should I meet you?" Delia asked. Liam smiled, that sounded good to him "Meet me at the entrance of our movie, okay? See you soon." With that, Liam left and ran off to the men's toilets – to answer his messages'
He got out his phone and read the messages which said: "Are you sure you can't see me tonight? - Madison". Liam looked concerned when he read the message, he knew who it was from.
"{Well – I guess I can squeeze in time, will text you soon and let you know}" was Liam's reply. He then walked out of the mens toilets, and went to find Delia who was still holding the popcorn, drinks and the tickets. He found her waiting for him at the entrance of the theater, she was talking to a male whose job it was to tear the ticket in half and tell the movie-goer which room the movie is in.
"Yeah, I've seen that movie, it was pretty good. My girlfriend wanted to see it so I went with her and our friends" the male informed Delia. Liam overheard him talk to her, and had a good look at the male, he wore a navy blue tuxedo and had a name tag which said "Marcus", revealing his name. Marcus had blond hair and brown eyes, he had freckles on his face and always smiled as he spoke. "This must be Liam, right?" Marcus nodded to Liam who joined Delia's side. Liam put his arm around Delia - though he didn't want to - he felt uncomfortable doing that in front of Marcus. "Yes, this is Liam. Liam this is Marcus. I met Marcus back in primary school, and never really kept in contact with him. I was quiet surprised to see him working here. He recognized me," Delia informed Liam then gave Marcus the tickets. "We'd better see the movie otherwise we'll miss out, as much as I'd love to stay and chat to you" Delia added with a smile.
Marcus returned the smile. "Thank you. I hope you both enjoy the movie. Have a nice evening hope to see you again sometime. Your movie is in room number two," Marcus tore the tickets in half and gave the other half of the ticket back to Delia. "Thank you, we will," Delia then left with Liam. Once Liam and Delia were out of Marcus's sight, Liam let go of Delia. "Let's sit at the back row," he ordered as they made their way to the room that the movie was playing in.
"I love sitting at the back-row seats! You get a better view of the movie sitting there. I used to sit up at the front seat but I ended up with a sore neck by the end of the movie," Delia replied, as they entered cinema room number two. She and Liam made their way up the stairs, seeing several people sitting in the chairs already, women, children and families, some were with Pokémon and some were without. "That makes sense, I used to sit at the middle row" Liam told her - surprisingly that part is true. He stopped walking for a moment when they got up to the last seat and nodded to inform Delia that she could have a seat first in the back row. Delia smiled and looked at the seats at the back row, they all looked comfortable and not many people were sitting there. She chose the middle back seats and sat down in a seat, then put the cool drinks in the cup holders which were on the arm chairs.
Liam placed his feet on the head of the chair that was in front of him - nobody was sitting there, so he didn't care. He crossed his legs and slouched down, putting one hand behind his head, the other in his popcorn box. He grabbed a handful of popcorn and shoved it in his mouth, munching loudly.
Delia watched and wondered if he always did that. "Uhm, Liam, people might want to sit in that seat, so it's rude if you put your feet - OW!" she was about to ask him politely to remove his feet from the chair - in return, Liam slapped her across the face. "So?! They can sit else where, don't tell me what to do! I'm the one who tells you!" he hissed. The slap stung Delia's face - unfortunately for her nobody took notice of her and Liam being in the back-row.
She raised her hand and put it where he had slapped her - a single tear rolled down her eye. She glanced at Liam who was now on his mobile, possibly texting or playing games. She wanted to tell him that he wasn't supposed to use his mobile in the cinemas - however was afraid he would hit her again. She wished the movie would hurry up.
Soon the lights went out and the screen turned on. An advertisement of an upcoming movie started to play - that caught Delia's eye. She hoped she got the chance to see it. In some aspects two of the characters of the movie reminded her of herself and Professor Oak. Liam continued to repeat his behavior - eating popcorn loudly and playing on his phone. He also took his drink and drunk it noisily.
"SH!" Someone called out from room - aiming for Liam. He however, thought it was Delia who had mentioned it and slapped her again, same place, causing tears to come to her eyes. She wanted to go home at this rate. The movie finally started:
The movie showed a Roselia who was standing near a lake, holding hands with a young Roilu, who appeared to be her lover, the two Pokémon were casually walking along the side of the lake when a Arcanine appeared and growled at Roselia, Roselia looked frightened, but her Roilu stepped in front of her and spread its arms out to protect her. Arcanine used Flame Thrower against the Roilu, who dodged forgetting that his beloved Roselia was behind it. Roselia got a direct hit from the Flame Thrower and fainted, the Arcanine smirked and ran up to Roselia. Before Roilu could do anything, Arcanine bit onto the fainted Roselia's arm and put her on his back, and ran off.
Liam wasn't paying any attention to the movie, he was busy messaging Madison - his latest reply: "I will be there soon, Madison - love ya!" Deciding now was the time to leave Delia on their 'date', he got up and yawned loudly. "I'm gonna go to the toilet!" He announced just as loud as he yawned - annoying some people.
"AH - SHUDDUP!" a woman yelled out, causing Liam to yet again think that was Delia, in response, he kicked her leg - making her cry out in pain. With that - Liam left the room to make his way to Madison's house.
Delia watched the movie - alone and waited for Liam to return. She hoped he was able to at least finish watching the movie. At last - the movie had finished, however, Liam did not return. Worried about him, she left the room alone and looked all over in the cinema complex for him. No sign of him. With her stomach grumbling, she decided to wait for an hour for him outside the movies, hoping he'd make a quick run to get his wallet or something.
When the hour rolled over, another one returned. A gust of icy cold wind swept in the air. It was safe to say, she was in fact, alone aside from the random people walking to and from the cinema complex. Deciding to call home, Delia got up and looked for a pay video phone. She found one nearby and quickly dialed her number.
After spending most of the night talking to her sons (who went to bed around eight), Robert and Professor Oak, Sally got up and yawned. "I'm going to head to sleep now, good night guys, love you, Robert" she announced, stretching her arms as she let out another yawn. She looked at the clock on the wall which appeared to be a round Pokeball - which had three hands in the middle and numbers 1 to 12 written around the edge.
"I think I'll join you too, Sal. I'm getting tired and Jason wants to do more training tomorrow" Robert yawned and stretched his arms and glanced at the clock, it was ten past nine. He and Sally looked at one another in concern, as did Professor Oak - Delia was late from her curfew - she was meant to be home at nine. "Dee's late and I'm worried," Sally announced, with a concerned face expression. "She is always on time and this is out of character for her. I hope nothing bad has happened" she bit her bottom lip after saying that.
"I'm sure Delia would ring us if something's up, she always normally would" Professor Oak reassured her - though he was just as worried as they were - maybe even more. 'I hope' he thought silently. Just as he said that, the three of of them heard the videophone ring which was located in the kitchen.
"Ring! Ring! Ring! Phone Call! Phone Call! Ring! Ring! Ring!" The video phone repeated itself.
"I hope it's not Jenny saying that Delia's been badly hurt..." Robert bit his bottom lip anxiously, only causing Sally to become more worried.
"I'll go and answer it, I doubt it, Robert. I'm sure Dee's fine - it's possibly her calling us saying she's had a great time and might be late" Professor Oak announced.
"And if it's not Delia - I'm ringing Officer Jenny, and asking her to look for Dee. I'm really worried" Sally told Professor Oak - who then left the room nodding with agreement.
Professor Oak ran to the video phone and answered it, sighing in relief to see Delia's pretty face appear on the screen. She looked worried and upset when he answered it - making him feel concerned about her.
"Delia! Huh? What's wrong?" Professor Oak asked, glancing around to see if Sally and Robert were nearby - they weren't. They were getting ready to go to bed. All he could hear was the sound of Delia's voice and the clock ticking away in the background.
"I think Liam ditched me on my first date with him. I waited for him for an hour but he never came back" Delia told him - her voice sounded like she was about to cry. She however, seemed to hold back the tears to talk to the professor.
"He did WHAT?! I'll come and pick you up. Where are you?" Professor Oak gasped in surprise and annoyance. He had a good mind to talk to the boy in class the next day - as he didn't expect Liam to be the type to ditch a girl on the date - he thought he'd be better then that as the boy's grades were excellent. "I'm outside the cinemas alone and cold," Delia told him as she rubbed her arms to try and keep warm.
"Dee, stay put. I'll be there soon, I promise" Professor Oak announced, earning a smile from Delia. "Actually on second thoughts, go inside the cinema complex, and stay warm, I'll come and find you. I don't want you to be cold while you're waiting for me to come" he added.
"Thank you, Sam" Delia said, then the Professor hung up, she did the same. 'Where else is there for me to go?' Delia thought after Professor Oak said stay put.
Delia breathed a sigh and sat down near the video phone. It was still cold and she shivered a bit. 'It could be a misunderstanding, maybe Liam will tell me tomorrow when I'm at university, he and I do have the same class,' she thought to herself. "I'm glad Professor Oak is going to pick me up, I'm guessing my parents were busy or sleeping, most likely the first option," Delia blushed as she mentioned the professor's name. 'I guess my crush on Professor Oak hasn't faded away considering I'm dating Liam,' she thought. 'But why did Liam hit me like he did? Gus never did this to me... it doesn't feel right. I might tell Sam and ask him for opinions.'
Deciding to obey Professor Oak after another gust of cold wind swept through the air, Delia made her way back inside the cinema complex noticing several couples holding hands and reading the posters on the wall. She wondered if any experienced what she had just done with Liam. She hoped not for their sake. She looked around and found a free seat near the gaming area of the complex and sat down, watching several people playing video games, laughing and talking. She closed her eyes and rest her hands on the edge of the seat, and began to day dream until a strange premonition came to her - however she didn't know it was one at the time.
Delia's Premonition
She found herself crying, as she stood near the body of her mother - who was lying in her own bed. "M-mum! This can't be true, please, wake up! M-mum?! You've got to" Delia pleaded, gently shaking her mother - who didn't respond. She touched her mother who felt icy cold. "M-mum... You can't - not on my birthday! First Liam ditches me, now you leave me? I didn't get the chance to say how much I love you" Delia sobbed, resting her head on her mother's chest, crying. "I never knew you were ill, father only told me today and we had an argument over it now he's leaving with my brothers!"
End Premonition:
"Delia?!" Professor Oak's voice pulled the student back into reality. Sighing in relief, only knowing it was just a strange dream of some-sort, Delia got up - forgetting she was at the cinemas for a moment she flung her arms around the professor and started crying.
Professor Oak calmly hugged her - he presumed she was upset about Liam leaving her. "It's alright, Dee." He gently rubbed her back to comfort her.
"I-I can't believe my mum's really gone... I never got to tell her how much I loved her," Delia sobbed into his arms. Several cinema goers looked at the two friends and began to suspect that they were a couple.
"What do you mean, Dee? I was talking to your mother just a few minutes ago before I left to pick you up" Professor Oak asked sounding confused. Delia looked at him and sniffled. "Then, she's still alive?" she asked, trying to blink her tears away.
"Mhm! I can reassure you she's alive and at home. Come on let's go Dee - besides, who told you she was gone?" Professor Oak said, placing an arm around Delia as the two began leaving the complex. Delia let go of him, blushing as he kept his arm around her for comfort.
"I only thought I found out just a few minutes ago. I was waiting for you then somehow I found myself sitting near mum - who was lying on her bed motionless. She died on my birthday - so I thought" Delia explained to him with confusion in her voice.
"Oh, Dee! That must've been scary for you - it sounds like you were having a dream you must've fallen asleep while you were waiting for me" Professor Oak said. The two walked outside the cinema complex - with people staring at them in surprise though they didn't seem to notice.
"Maybe it was a dream - but it felt so real" Delia told him.
"Hopefully not a premonition, those are scary" Professor Oak shuddered at the thought of premonitions. Delia nodded in agreement as they made their way to the car park to find his vehicle. Once they found it, Professor Oak opened the passenger door first allowing Delia to get in, then he closed the door once she was sitting in the car. She put her seat-belt on and waited for the professor to join. He walked around his car to the driver's side and opened the door. He climbed in and sat on his seat - he reached out for the handle and pulled the door shut - then put his seat belt on. Delia watched him turn the car on. He switched the headlights and looked both ways to ensure nobody was coming - then started driving as it was clear to do so.
Liam smiled as he arrived at a two story home - which was obviously not Delia's because this home was rather posh looking. It was still night time and about nine thirty when he knocked on the front door, loudly. The security light had switched on and the door swung open, with a smiling Madison behind it. "Baby!" Madison exclaimed, throwing her arms around Liam. "I missed you, my sweetheart" she told him.
Liam smiled, returning the hug. "I missed you too, my darling. How was your night?" he asked, smiling as he spoke to her.
"It was boring, up until you came and brightened my day. Would you like to come in, Liam? It's cold out there and I don't want you to catch a cold, you're too precious for that!" Madison said.
"Sure, I'd love to, Madison" Liam replied. The two walked inside Madison's home hand in hand. Madison took Liam to her bedroom as the rest of her family were sleeping.
"What'cha doing tomorrow night, Li?" Madison asked playfully, hoping to catch a date with him.
"Working," Liam pouted, folding his arms. "Speaking of which, I'm running a bit late tonight."
"You're still with Team Rocket?" Madison asked.
"Of course, it's good pay" Liam grinned. "Got me a shiny Charmander 'cause of that job. Should've seen Know-it-All's face when I showed her this afternoon!" he boasted, referring know-it-all to Delia.
"I bet her face was uglier when she saw it" Madison said proudly - she hated Delia. Liam laughed.
"Truth be told, she is a pretty girl," Liam started to say.
"Yeah, pretty ugly!" Madison finished, folding her arms as she sat up on her bed. Liam joined her side - both of them laughed at the statement then silence filled the air up until Madison spoke again.
"Hey did you hear that I called Professor Oak, Professor Slowpoke?" Madison grinned, proud of her insult to the professor.
"Of course! He suits the name, I'm beat why people like him. Delia especially - rumors have it she's got a crush on him! She's nuts if she likes him that way" Liam responded, placing his arms around Madison.
" Hm, Let's figure out when we can go on another date - then I have to leave for work" Liam pressed his lips against Madison's forehead.
"Alright sweetie, when will you be free next?" Madison asked. "Oh, speaking of HER, I have a plan for university tomorrow. It will put her to shame and make her absolutely miserable - if it works" Madison cackled as she thought of it.
"I'll be interested in seeing that. Well, I gotta go dear. I'll see you soon. Love you, Madison" Liam got up and kissed her. "Aww, baby do you have to go?" Madison pouted, sulking as he started to leave.
"Sadly yes. Giovanni won't be happy if I continue being late. See ya" Liam waved to her and left.
Madison sighed and lay on her bed - she had planned to write 'D.K loves S.O forever" on the board the next morning and draw a rough sketch of them together. 'That will teach her,' she laughed at her idea.
"Thank you, Sam for picking me up. I would have walked on my own but I don't have my own Pokémon yet," Delia said to him, blushing as she looked at him. She loved being with the professor.
"You're welcome, Delia. How did you enjoy your evening otherwise?" Professor Oak replied to her. He started driving them back to Delia's house while talking to her his eyes were focused on the road ahead of him, while his ears were both listening to Delia and the traffic - though there weren't many cars out there.
Delia told Professor Oak everything what happened on her date with Liam, though she was hesitant about telling him that Liam had slapped her. In the end she decided to tell Professor Oak about Liam slapping her. When she did, the professor slammed his breaks on - he was coming to the traffic lights which JUST turned red. "HE WHAT?!" Professor Oak yelled out furiously. He couldn't believe that Liam had done that to Delia.
Delia repeated what she told him, sounding worried.
"I can't believe he did this to you, Dee. I wish I were there to protect you. Liam sounds like the controlling abusive type. I never expected that from him as his grades are excellent." Professor Oak told her and sighed.
"A-abusive? I've never met anyone like Liam, though. He was fine when he was introduced to my parents, though a little nervous about meeting my dad who doesn't trust Liam but has given him a chance. I don't know what to do, Sam" Delia sighed as she recalled the events. She told him what Liam was like to her in school - how he was always so sweet to her when others were around. Professor Oak looked at the traffic lights which had turned green, he drove on and listened.
"Dee. I've known you since the day you were born. You and I are close. I don't like the fact that Liam has been treating you that way. I'm going to have a talk to him tomorrow when I get the chance and ask him why." Professor Oak said, wishing he could shake the daylights out of Liam.
Delia looked at him in concern. "But Sam, it's possible he might be testing me, right?" she asked hoping that could be a part of the reason as she looked at him. "Perhaps he wanted to see if I could um, defend myself?" her voice was full of hope.
Awkward silence filled the air after what Delia had mentioned. Professor Oak felt helpless. "Maybe I can talk to him and try to change him," Delia smiled at the idea of changing Liam and teaching him the right way to treat girls.
Professor Oak looked around his surroundings ahead of him, he could see he was getting closer to Delia's house. "Dee.. if you do decide to talk to him, and go on another date with him, please at least, take Dragonite with you. If you have any trouble with him in the future and get the chance to send Dragonite to find me" he said hoping she would accept his offer.
Delia smiled and nodded. "Okay, Sam. I will. Thank you for caring about me" she smiled and noticed that he was now pulling up at her driveway. Once he had parked the car, she gave him a kiss on the cheek, and blushed. "Thank you, again, for picking me up Sam" she un-clipped her seat-belt and Professor Oak turned off his car - blushing after Delia had kissed his cheek. He decided to keep the talk between himself and Delia - as with the kiss.
"Anytime, Dee. I'll always be here for you when you need me." With that, he clipped his seat belt, and got out of the car, then opened Delia's door and helped her out. Smiling, he walked Delia to the door. Delia had the spare keys to her home, and unlocked the door - thinking that her parents will be asleep, they were not. Sally and Robert greeted Delia and hugged her tight. They were dressed in their night gowns and looked tired.
"Oh Dee, we were so worried about you, what happened?" Sally asked, moving aside so Professor Oak could come in. He didn't plan to stay long as he had work the next day.
Delia told her parents that Liam had ditched her on the date - however, she was afraid to tell them that he had slapped her so she left that part out. Professor Oak noticed that, however, for her sake he didn't say anything about it.
"Dee, maybe he had an appointment to go to and had forgotten to tell you? I'm sure he'll tell you tomorrow at university. Anyway you'd better go to bed and get some rest, I'm glad you are home safe and well" Sally suggested.
"I'd better go too, Sally and Robert, g'night everyone. Delia, I'll see you tomorrow!" Professor Oak announced with a yawn. Delia flung her arms around him and hugged him, thanking him once more for taking her home. He returned the hug and let go, Delia did the same.
Sally smiled watching them hug. "You know, you two would make a cute couple, Dee. If only you were a year older," she commented half whispering it. Delia heard and blushed.
Professor Oak laughed, smiling and blushing at the same time. "Thanks, Sal. Anyway, I'll see you all tomorrow. Have a good sleep, Dee" with that, the professor left.
"Mum!" Delia exclaimed after Professor Oak left. "You didn't tell him, did you?!" She gasped, hoping that Sally hadn't told the professor about her crush on him.
"Oh no, sweetie. But it's true, you would make a good pair" Sally simply smiled then left to go to bed, with Robert following after her. He had no idea what to say about that. Deciding to head to bed, Delia couldn't stop thinking of what her mother had told her - she wondered what the professor thought about it and shook her head. "Nah, there's no way Sam and I would end up together, if we did that would be too good to be true" she said quietly as she made her way to her room.
The next morning, Delia arrived at school early, after being dropped off by her mother who never ended up telling her what she had told Professor Oak and Robert the night before about her health. Delia thanked her mother and ran straight to class, bumping into Caroline and Norman on the way. She smiled and noticed that Caroline wore a locket. "I take it, you went on a date last night?" Delia asked, smiling at Caroline.
"Mhm! Norman gave this to me before we went home. I'll tell you about our date later. I'd better go to class. Love you, Norman. I'll see you and Delia at lunch!" Caroline smiled then ran off. "I'd better go too. I'll see you at lunch, Delia." With that, Norman left.
Delia made it to her classroom, blushing to see Professor Oak writing something on the board. She was the only student so far that had turned up in the class. "Good morning, Sam," she greeted the professor with a smile. Professor Oak turned around and returned the smile, "Good morning Delia, how are you? You're early this morning, class doesn't start until another twenty minutes," he told her.
"I know, it's better to be early then late, right? I bought some lunch for you today," Delia told him, with a smile. "Thank you, Delia, I really need to think of some way to pay you back for your kindness," Professor Oak said with a smile. "You already do pay me back, our friendship is what counts," Delia went to sit down at her seat. Silence filled the atmosphere for a while as Professor Oak continued to write things on the board, he wondered what class was going to be like for that day, especially with his troublesome student, Madison.
Madison had already went ahead with her plan earlier that morning and wrote on the board - however, Professor Oak saw that and rubbed it out - he knew Delia wouldn't do something immature like that.
The day went quick as usual, for Delia and at lunch time she finally ran into Liam after she gave Professor Oak his lunch. Liam hugged her when he saw her. "I've been looking for you all morning, Delia." He told her, with a smile. Delia thought it was strange that he was acting nice. She felt awkward when he hugged her but not wanting to be rude, she returned the hug. "You were? Why?! After you ditched me last night?!" she questioned, sounding furious with him. "and not to mention you slapped and kicked me for no reason" she raised her voice earning attention from a few students who were walking by - Norman and Caroline happened to be among those students who saw an angry Delia.
Liam let her go. "I had to go to work, and the movie was boring. You deserved it - you were acting stupid over a movie" he replied, folding his arms. Caroline overheard him say that and wanted to punch Liam - however was stopped by Norman.
"Leave it, Caroline. I'm sure Delia's got this - think we should go and get Professor Oak - no wait you stay here and I'll get him" Norman told Caroline who nodded. Norman then ran off, leaving a concerned Caroline watching Delia and Liam.
"The movie was NOT boring and I wasn't acting immature. I thought boyfriends were supposed to look after their girlfriends and shower them with love, not hate" Delia hissed. "You were supposed to be the one who loves me - you acted like you did earlier and last night you were a jerk. You're lucky I didn't tell my father" with that statement, Liam pushed her to the ground.
Caroline couldn't stand it anymore, and ran to Delia's side. "You jerk! How could you do this to Dee?!" she snapped at him.
Liam simply put his hands in his pockets and looked at Caroline. "She fell over, she shouldn't be clumsy" he then put a hand out to help Delia up - who for once slapped it away, earning 'Ooohs' from the students watching.
"It may have been our first date - and it will be our last. Unless you can change, Liam, I have no interest in you" Delia warned him - getting up. Caroline looked at Delia in surprise - she had never seen her friend so angry before.
"That's fine with me, De-lair" Liam retorted. "At least I don't have a crush on that lousy professor - speaking of which looks like he's here now with Norman" he said aloud ensuring that the students around her heard that. Delia's face went red. "Don't bring him into this" she hissed at Liam. More students - and Madison joined in, thinking that there was going to be a fight. Delia turned around and smiled in relief to see Professor Oak running up to her with Norman.
"Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!" Madison chanted - hoping that others would join in, however they didn't.
"That will be enough from you now, Madison and Liam. Go to the Office, I'll see you both soon" Professor Oak scolded both of the students.
"Fine, whatever. See ya, later" Liam shrugged and put his hands in his pockets, he walked away from Delia, with Madison following after him. Students started booing Liam - for his behavior, he wanted to kick himself after hearing them.
"Maybe they're booing Delia?!" Madison suggested, clasping her hands together in delight at the thought of it. Liam shook his head. 'What have I done?' he thought silently to himself.
"Are you alright, Delia?" Professor Oak asked, once he joined her side. Caroline looked at her in concern - after how Liam acted she wondered what was going through her best friend's mind. "I'm alright, now. Thank you, Professor Oak" Delia answered - when there were other students around them she had to call him that, however when she was with her family or alone with him, she was able to call him Sam.
"Can I go after him, please?!" Norman begged, clenching his fists. Caroline and Delia giggled. "It's not worth it, Dear. Liam will either have a think about it or become more of a jerk then usual. We just have to see what happens" Caroline replied, placing a hand on her boyfriend's shoulder.
'I can't believe, he tried bringing Sam into this! Even if other's found out about my crush on him, it won't stop me from the way I feel' Delia thought, as she half listened to Norman and Caroline talking.
Soon it was time for them to go back to class. Delia walked closely with Professor Oak and kept an eye out for Liam.
"What happened back there, anyway, if you don't mind me asking, Delia?" Professor Oak asked as he put his hands in his lab coat pocket, walking the same slow pace as Delia did. Delia told him the events - leaving no details out. "As far as I'm concerned, Liam and I have broken up. If he decides to change his attitude - I MAY give him one more chance - but that all depends of how he changes himself" Delia finished.
"You know, Sa- I mean Professor Oak. With all the events that have happened in life, I'm glad you've been there all the way for me, and my family. I'm lucky to know you" Delia told him - causing the Professor to blush.
Silence filled the atmosphere - Professor Oak tried to think of what to say in return. "Thank you, Dee. I'm lucky to know you and you're family too."
Delia smiled at that response. She closed her eyes and began to wonder what her future will bring her.
To be continued...
